Dame’s Chicken & Waffles

Where should I go for my first restaurant review for the Raleigh Citizen? The first place I thought of is actually a spot in downtown Durham called Dame’s Chicken & Waffles. Not Raleigh, I know, but Durham has attracted a number of interesting eateries in recent years, and this one stands out as a traditional southern alternative to the trend of tapas bars and experimental gastropubs.

If you love southern fried chicken (and boy do I love fried chicken) and if you love waffles (delicious, soft, fluffy waffles), then this is a must-go in the Triangle. Since it opened about 2 years ago, Dame’s has been serving up five different flavors of waffles (including a vegan option, although practically nothing else on the menu is vegan-friendly). Each waffle comes topped with wings, cutlets, or legs and one of several “shmears” – whipped butters in fun flavors like orange honeycomb and peach & apricot creme. No chicken & waffle meal is complete without a side, and I highly recommend the porky and vinegary Hot N Spicy Greens and the Triple Mac N Cheese. The grits on a neighboring table also looked good.

My only complaint is the wait, which was 45 minutes after the boyfriend and I showed up at 6pm on a Saturday. There is some seating in the back for those waiting for a table, but the place was so crowded that the hostess told us to wait outside – yikes!

As Durham continues to grow and new restaurants pop up, Dame’s still provides affordable, old fashioned soul food that is unmatched in Durham.

What to wear:

Dress code is casual, and I’d go with sweatpants. Seriously. The portions are humungous.